Almost every AI companion app says "free" on the landing page and means "five messages." Janitor AI is the rare exception: the free tier is the product most people use. But Janitor now also sells a subscription, an in-house model marketplace and per-token credits, and guides to "free proxies" are everywhere. So if you searched is Janitor AI free, the useful answer is: free for what, and where does the meter start?
Yes. Chatting on Janitor's own model is free and unlimited. The free tier includes "unlimited chats with millions of bots," standard chat models and about 9,000 tokens of context. You pay only if you want janitor+ ($12.99 a month in the iPhone app) for 5x more memory and priority replies, or if you route chats to outside models through a paid proxy or Router credits.
Sources: Janitor Help "FAQ: Subscription - Janitor+" (updated Jun 25, 2026), janitor+ launch post, and US App Store listing, all checked Oct 7, 2026.
What Janitor AI's free tier includes
Janitor's help center lists the free tier in three lines: "Unlimited chats with millions of bots," "Access to standard chat models," and a "Context limit of around 9k tokens."[1] Asked whether the free version will disappear, it answers: "No. We will always keep a free option available for everyone."[1]
The free model is JLLM (JanitorLLM), described as "the default model used in Janitor unless you've hooked up an external one via API. It's free, built-in, and ready to go out of the box."[3] No credit card, no API key, no proxy.
The real limit is memory, not messages. Janitor's own guide to tokens says JLLM's memory "often holds between 8,000 to 9,000 tokens," and once you hit it, the AI "starts 'forgetting' the oldest bits of your conversation."[4] At roughly 750 words per 1,000 tokens (Janitor's own rule of thumb), that's about 6,000 to 7,000 words of character definition plus recent chat.[3]
We haven't yet measured peak-hour queue times or reply speed on the free tier. We'll add that after testing rather than repeat claims from forums.
What janitor+ costs and what it adds
Janitor launched janitor+, "our first-ever subscription product," at $12.99 a month. The launch post promises the free version "stays exactly the same, and stays completely free," and says the price was set "to hopefully break even" on GPU costs.[2]
According to the help center, janitor+ adds:[1]
- 5x more context for better memory
- Priority access for faster replies
- Monthly swipes with Janitor's best models (rerolls on stronger models)
- A golden username and checkmark, plus comment react emojis
- Access to janitor+ Router (web only), covered below[5]
| Where you buy | Price | Who handles billing |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone app (US App Store) | $12.99 / month[8] | Apple |
| Website | $12.99 / month (launch price) | Stripe; payments may also be processed by Dulova Investments Ltd, Cyprus |
| Website, yearly | Unverified Reported by third-party sites; not shown on a page we could read | Stripe |
| Android (Google Play) | To verify |
Proxies: is the DeepSeek or OpenRouter route free?
A proxy lets you replace JLLM with an outside model. Janitor's glossary calls it "the middleman between your chat and the model provider."[3] Janitor doesn't charge for this, but the provider can.
The most common free route is OpenRouter's ":free" model variants. OpenRouter's own documentation sets these limits:[6]
| Credits you've ever bought on OpenRouter | Free-model requests per minute | Free-model requests per day |
|---|---|---|
| Less than $10 | 20 | 50 |
| At least $10 | 20 | 1,000 |
So "free DeepSeek on Janitor" is genuinely free up to 50 messages a day, and a one-time $10 top-up raises that to 1,000. Paid (non-free) models are billed per token by the provider. If you'd rather skip setup entirely, our adult Character AI alternatives guide covers apps that work out of the box.
Unofficial free proxies run by strangers can log every message you send through them, and API keys pasted into random sites can be drained. Our Janitor AI safety guide explains where proxied messages go.
janitor+ Router credits
Since July 2026, janitor+ subscribers can use third-party models inside Janitor without their own key, through janitor+ Router. It's web only for now, billed per token from a wallet at the rate shown for each model, with a 10% discount on some popular models for subscribers.[5]
- Subscribers can claim $5 in launch credits, which expire one year after being claimed.[5]
- Router credits are non-refundable except where the law requires.[5]
- Credits can be used up even when a reply is cancelled, cut off, filtered or refused after processing starts.[7]
- Janitor still recommends its own JLLM+ for everyday roleplay; Router is "an addition, not a replacement."[5]
Janitor AI free vs paid, side by side
| Feature | Free | janitor+ |
|---|---|---|
| Chats with community bots | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Model | Standard chat models (JLLM) | JLLM+ plus monthly swipes on stronger models |
| Context (memory) | About 9k tokens | 5x more |
| Reply priority | Standard | Priority access |
| Router (outside models, no key) | No | Yes, pay per token |
| Your own proxy | Yes; provider may charge | Yes; provider may charge |
| Content rules | Same for both. Paying doesn't loosen moderation (Terms §8.7). | |
Is janitor+ worth paying for?
Only if memory is your problem. The free tier's 9k-token context is the main thing that breaks long roleplays, and janitor+ multiplies it by five. If your chats are short or you already run a proxy with a large-context model, the subscription mostly buys speed and a badge.
Two cautions before you pay. First, you can't pay your way past the content rules: the terms say a subscription doesn't limit moderation or filtering.[7] Second, refunds are rare, so start monthly. If what you actually want is an 18+ companion with images and voice included, a dedicated companion app may cost about the same; compare prices in our Candy AI alternatives guide.
How to cancel janitor+
- Web: Settings → Billing → Manage Subscription. You're sent to Stripe's billing page, where you can cancel.[1]
- iPhone: cancel in your Apple ID subscriptions. Android: cancel in Google Play. App subscriptions can't be cancelled from the web.[1]
- Access continues to the end of the billing period, then the account reverts to the free tier.[1]
- Billing problems go to [email protected], with the email on your account.[1]
Frequently asked questions
Is Janitor AI free?
Yes. Janitor's help center says the free tier includes unlimited chats with millions of bots, access to standard chat models, and a context limit of around 9,000 tokens. It also says "We will always keep a free option available for everyone."
How much is janitor+?
Janitor announced janitor+ at $12.99 a month, and the US App Store lists "Janitor+ Monthly" at $12.99. Third-party sites report a cheaper yearly plan on the web; we could not confirm that price on an official page, so check the checkout before you pay.
Do I need a proxy or API key to use Janitor AI?
No. JLLM, Janitor's own model, is the default and needs no key. A proxy is only needed if you want to use an outside model such as DeepSeek through your own account with a provider like OpenRouter.
Is the DeepSeek proxy on Janitor AI free?
It can be. OpenRouter's free model variants (IDs ending in ":free") allow 20 requests a minute and 50 requests a day if you have bought less than $10 of credits, or 1,000 a day if you have bought at least $10. Paid models are billed by the provider per token.
Does janitor+ remove the content filter?
No. Section 8.7 of the terms says paying for a subscription or Router credits does not limit Janitor's ability to moderate content or filter or refuse requests.
Can I get a refund on janitor+?
Rarely. The help center says subscriptions are "generally non-refundable," and the terms rule out partial refunds for unused time except where law requires. Router credits are final. App-store purchases follow Apple or Google's refund process.
Sources
- Janitor Help: FAQ: Subscription - Janitor+, updated Jun 25, 2026
- Janitor AI: Introducing janitor+ (launch announcement)
- Janitor Help: What is JLLM?, updated Jul 31, 2025
- Janitor Help: Tokens: Your AI's Memory Budget
- Janitor Help: janitor+ Router, last updated Jul 31, 2026
- OpenRouter docs: Limits (free usage limits), read Oct 7, 2026
- Janitor AI Terms of Use, updated Jul 29, 2026 (§8.3, §8.7, §8.8, §9)
- Janitor: Interactive Stories on the US App Store (in-app purchases), read Oct 7, 2026